Election Runoffs Get Under Way Tuesday Democrats See Good Chance To Win Over Sturm

September 28, 1986|By Mark Andrews of The Sentinel Staff

SANFORD — With more than five weeks to go before the general election, Seminole County Democrats say they have at least an even chance of taking a county commission seat away from two-term incumbent Bob Sturm and the Republicans.

Negative political baggage that Sturm carries into the campaign and a surprisingly strong showing against him by an unknown Republican challenger in the primary have combined to inject unexpected life into the only commission race on the ballot this year.

Sturm, who has raised $81,800 for his campaign compared to French's $3,500, insists he can exceed the 21-point margin by which he beat challenger Bob French in their last race for the District 2 seat four years ago.

French, 52, who served four years on the commission before losing a re- election bid in 1980, says he is in a good position to oust Sturm because of what he considers the incumbent's weaknesses this year: his support of the road-funding referendum last June, which lost in a landslide; his heavy contributions from developers and other real estate interests; and his waffling on the county's property tax increase.

''Oh, by the way,'' French said, ''I'm going to win.''

Sturm, 60, defends his eight-year record on the commission and offers several arguments in response to French's criticisms:

-- The Legislature gave Central Florida no other option in the road- building referendum, along with higher gas taxes, than to raise the property tax.

-- Although he has 11 contributions of $1,000, Sturm says he also has more than 400 individual donors to his campaign -- indicating a broad base of support.

-- Several proposals to his fellow commissioners last week, which would have cut the size of the county's tax increase by more than 40 percent, were rejected by a majority of the commission and Sturm voted against the budget and tax rates, which are going up an average of at least 17 percent.

The county's two political chairmen offer the party line when asked about their standard-bearers' chances in the Nov. 4 election.

''French has a good chance of winning,'' said David McIntosh, chairman of the county's Democratic Executive Committee. ''He has previously been a commissioner, so he's not an unknown quantity, and his campaign seems to have impressed some people.''

''Bob Sturm has been a good commissioner,'' said Ray Valdes, chairman of the county's Republican Executive Committee. ''It's a safe seat for Bob and the party. I feel confident he's going to keep it.''

French ridicules what he calls Sturm's last-minute efforts to sidestep responsibility for the tax increase, saying the incumbent has supported higher taxes throughout the county's budget process.

Sturm says his 11th-hour proposals to the county commission to cut spending were not politically motivated and that they would have worked to keep the tax increase down to a reasonable level. He said his efforts in that direction have defused to some extent the issue of taxes as a negative in his campaign. Sturm downplays French's advantage of also having experience on the commission, saying that French left the board six years ago and that many people have moved into the county since then and would not be familiar with him.

The other county commissioner up for election this year, Sandra Glenn in District 4, drew no opposition for the second straight time.

McIntosh says that voters should remember that Seminole County has an all- Republican county commission and, therefore, at least one Democrat is needed on the board for balance.

McIntosh, who faces an uphill battle to rebuild the Democratic Party in Seminole, says that, with the county's tax increase this year, the all-GOP commission has inherited what used to be the Republicans' complaint against the opposition: ''tax and spend.''

''That is not a one-party problem. The commission has shown no restraint,'' McIntosh said. ''Now that they Republicans control everything, they are pursuing the same strategy tax and spend with equal or greater vigor.''